Uriel Liquidano sacrifices his head for the team. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
He was a new-school kid who played like an old-school athlete.
Uriel “Woody” Liquidano may have graduated in 2017, but his playing style would have made him a perfect fit back in the ’60s and ’70s.
Whether on the football field or the soccer pitch, the middle of three children (he followed big bro Oscar and preceded lil’ sis Estefanny) never left any doubt.
Uriel played hard, he played with passion, and he excelled as both an individual athlete and as a valuable link holding his team together.
Liquidano was joined by sister Estefanny, his parents, and one of his nieces on Senior Night.
The last time he walked off the Coupeville High School football field, I shook his hand and said something about how impressed I was with how he handled himself during his prep career.
Today, on his birthday, we’re following that up with something which should have happened a long time ago – we’re inducting him into the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, where he will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Oscar.
After this, you’ll find the brothers up at the top of the blog, living large under the Legends tab.
And why not?
Uriel played like a legend, while rarely being one to beat his own chest and scream about his greatness.
Instead, he yanked his helmet down on his head, locked eyes with opposing quarterbacks, then relentlessly chased them down, usually finishing plays having wrecked anyone foolish enough to get in his way.
Plop him on the soccer pitch as well, or the basketball court during his earlier days, and Uriel was just as much of a rampaging force of nature.
Pick a sport, and he was an enforcer.
On the gridiron, Uriel was a two-way starter, anchoring the offensive line, while rumbling on defense as a linebacker.
A team captain along with fellow Hall o’ Famers Clay Reilly and Jacob Martin, he led by example, busting his tail and delivering big plays.
Of all of his games in red and black, Uriel’s biggest probably came during his senior year, when he led a fired-up Wolves squad to a 41-10 thrashing of arch-rival South Whidbey as Coupeville retained possession of The Bucket.
As I wrote in the game story that night:
Senior Uriel Liquidano was a beast unleashed, spending most of his night gently cradling frightened Falcons as he slammed them to the turf after shedding would-be blockers.
Denied!
That smash-mouth playing style carried over to the soccer pitch, where he operated primarily as a defender for the Wolves.
Bust through Coupeville’s front line and Uriel was waiting to use and abuse you, sailing into battle with a huge smile on his face and his elbows set to “Crush Mode.”
An honor student off the field, and a guy who gave you everything he had from opening whistle to final whistle, he remains one of my favorite athletes to cover from the Coupeville Sports days.
So happy cake day, Uriel, best wishes for the future, and appreciation for the past.
You are the real deal, sir. Always have been, always will be.
Liquidano, Jacob Martin (32), and Clay Reilly (2) went out as champs, thrashing South Whidbey 41-10 as seniors.
